Cairian Pantheon
The Cairian Pantheon is the group of gods and beings that make up the land of Cairi. The strongest and most prevalent dieties are attributed to more general ideas. The hierarchy of the Cairi pantheon goes from the Great Basilisks to the Serpents of Man. Below the Serpents of Man are the Lesser Aglyphs, which are more human-like in appearance, bearing snake-like fangs and a snake's lower body, but has a human's upper body with wings. The Serpents of Man have domain over individual concepts, and appear more like an ophanim, with wings attached to it and a large snake coiling around an orb of light. The Great Basilisks look like unimaginably large snakes (save for Tief, who is a giant purple ophanim). The Pantheon's Serpents and Aglyphs are tended to by their Celestial angel servants, who tend to their every whim in Paralia (paradise) using their winged bodies. Celestials are typically created when a Serpent or Lesser Aglyph manages to, somehow, impregnate another Celestial (or vice versa). However, when a Lesser Aglyph, Serpent or Celestial does the same to a human or the mortal races, it results in an Aasimar. Curiously, the Aasimar and Celestial servants do not bear a snake-like lower body, yet have a somewhat scale-like rough skin. Aasimar and Yuan-ti should not be confused with one another. Yuan-ti are descended from these gods, while Aasimar are the servants of these gods. It is unknown where the Great Basilisks of Land, Sea, Sky and Cosmos come from, but some believe they hatched from something greater. The followers of the Pantheon worship all gods equally, but may seek the guidance of one god in particular. These are called "patrons". Pantheon of Great Cilios Cilios, the Great Basilisk of Land, is the creator of all landmasses in the land of Cairi. He is portrayed as a giant hooded tan cobra with armor-like scales, as long as the height of a mountain. Cilios is credited to being the creator of the races of Cairi, as well as all land creatures. Cilios is also the progenitor of civilization and innovation. Cilios and Ophidian waged war against eachother in the War of Creation, and along with Courid, went into dormancy. Cilios, angered by his loss against Ophidian, created several volcanoes to erupt and create islands after Ophidian flooded the land before Cairi. Cilios made his own Serpents of Man to divide his power up during his dormancy. * Emilios, the Serpent of the Sun and Time * Dikaio, the Serpent of Law and Duty 1 * Tempus, the Serpent of Warfare * Agrima, the Serpent of Harvest * Fotia, the Serpent of the Forge and Mine * Moira, the Serpent of Death and Passage to the Afterlife 1 Sariel's mother, Kaith, is one of the Lesser Aglyphs under Dikaio. Pantheon of Great Ophidian Ophidian, the Great Basilisk of Sea, is the creator of the great ocean in the land of Cairi. She is portrayed as a giant bleached blue boa constrictor that stands tall, layering itself upon it's long body. She is credited to being the creator of all sea-life in Cairi, the creator of emotion, and the creator of philosophy. Ophidian and Cilios waged war against each-other in the War of Creation, and along with Courid, went into dormancy. Ophidian, being the victor, flooded the land before Cairi in rage against her brother for his greed for more land. Exhausted by the war, both basilisks retreated into dormancy. However, islands were formed after the flooding, creating our modern world. Ophidian made her Serpents of Man to divide her power up during her dormancy. * Fengarian, the Serpent of the Moon and Space * Technis, the Serpent of Art * Fysiko, the Serpent of Nature * Myalo, the Serpent of Knowledge * Tychys, the Serpent of Luck * Gaaia, the Serpent of Medicine and Health Pantheon of Great Courid Courid, the Great Basilisk of the Sky, is the creator of weather and the sky above Cairi. He is the little brother of the two other basilisks, portrayed as a still massive but somewhat smaller green snake. Despite going into dormancy along with his siblings, he was unable to create Serpents. Instead, he created many beasts to fly high in the sky, influencing weather where they went. These were the Hydras of Weather. Some could bring winter, some brought rain, and some parted the clouds and brought the sun into visibility. Their behavior and appearances are dictated by the seasons of Cairi. One tale in Cairian mythos describes Emilios commanding some of the Hydras of Weather, implying the Serpents of Man and the Hydras work in conjunction to keep Cairi running in a stable manner by the will of the Great Basilisks. Pantheon of Tief Tief: the Banished One. It is portrayed as a giant purple ophanim, much more eldritch than her siblings. Tief is recalled to be the Banished One due to being sent away because of its violence, and is considered to be the creator of necromancy, the demonic languages and evil. Tief is also the creator of The Abyss: where damned souls are sent by the Serpent of Death. While the descendants of the Great Basilisks are the Yuan-ti, Tief's descendants are the Tiefling. Tiefling are the result of the mortal races interbreeding with demons over millennia. However, due to their association with Tief, tieflings are generally shunned by the populace of Cairi. The followers of Tief operate as a Cult. The members of the Cult of Tief seek to fully lift Tief out of The Abyss, believing that her followers will be granted eternal freedom from the chains of society. They believe current Cairian society is weak and blasphemous, and that the society of Cairi promotes obedience to gods that demand your worship or face divine punishment. They see Tief as a great liberator, and work closely with the demons that come from Tief's Abyss to serve them. To them, evil is grand liberation.